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Introduction:
You do not have to drive around Franklin very long to find
all different kinds of churches. Many of these different churches
find their beginnings in the Protestant Reformation. Once Martin
Luther broke from the Catholic Church and formed his own church,
an avalanche of splits and divisions occurred. As the different
churches grew, people in different locations were attracted into
the distinct religious movements. Desiring some kind of
organization among these different local bodies, a new entity was
formed—the Denomination. Since then, denominational Christianity
has been the norm. Each of us has grown up surrounded by, if not
in, denominationalism. It is so engrained in our society that to
even harp upon its divisive nature or to question the validity of
denominationalism is looked upon as ridiculous. However, we must
not be governed by the traditions of men. We must test every
thought, every tradition, every teaching by the word of God. So we
must ask, “Is denominationalism in the Bible?” Discussion: I.
In the Bible, we find the universal church and local
churches. A.
In the Bible, we read about Christ’s universal church. 1.
Jesus claimed He was going to establish and build His one
church in Matthew 16:18.
According to Ephesians
3:8-11, God had eternally purposed to bring about this church
in Christ. Further, we find that its head is Jesus Himself (Ephesians
1:22-23). Therefore its headquarters is in heaven at the right
hand of God, the Father (Acts
2:29-33). 2.
This universal church, headed by Christ alone, is the
spiritual assembly in Christ of all who are enrolled in
heaven—all the saved, of every place, in every time (Hebrews
12:22-24). According to Acts
2:47, the Lord adds those who are saved to this church. Thus
we conclude that the universal church is a collectivity of
individuals, not of churches. B.
In the Bible, we read about local churches of Christ. 1.
In I Corinthians 1:2,
Paul addressed his letter to “the church of God which is at
Corinth.” We are certain this cannot refer to the universal
church because in I
Corinthians 14:23, Paul mentioned the whole church coming
together in one place. That cannot happen with the universal
church—all the saved, everywhere, of every time. He is referring
to a localized group of Christians, assembling together with a
common purpose, under common leadership, using a common treasury. 2.
More than one of these local groups exist. When Paul wrote
the letter to the Galatian Christians he began, “To the churches
of Galatia” (Galatians
1:2). Galatia was not a city but a large region. If Paul were
writing today, he might well write “to the churches of
Tennessee.” Within that large region there were multiple
churches, to all of which this letter was addressed. Finally, Paul
demonstrates the multiplicity of local churches in Romans
16:16, saying, “The churches of Christ greet you.” 3.
Finally, note that while the Lord adds members to the
universal church when they become saved, Christians become members
of local congregations by mutual agreement. In Acts
9:26-28, Saul wanted to join himself to the disciples in
Jerusalem, but at first they would not agree. Once the matter of
his conversion was cleared up, the church in Jerusalem welcomed
Saul into their local fellowship. II.
In the Bible, we do not find denominations. A.
First, we must define our terms. 1.
Webster’s
Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary: p. 386, 1989 a.
Denomination:
…3. a religious group, usually including many local churches,
often larger than a sect. b.
Denominationalism:
denominational or sectarian spirit or policy; the tendency to
divide into denominations or sects. 2.
Evangelical
Dictionary of Theology, p. 310, 1984, Donald G. Tinder:
“Denominations are associations of congregations … that have a
common heritage. Moreover, a true denomination does not claim to
be the only legitimate expression of the church.” 3.
The
Dictionary of Religious Terms, p. 147, 1967, Donald T. Kaufman:
“Denominationalism—A term for the continuation of the
organizations and emphasis on the divisions and distinctions of
Protestantism.” B.
Denominationalism means far more than naming a church.
Considering the definitions above, we learn that … 1.
… a denomination is an organized collectivity of
churches. 2.
… denominations are distinct and divided from one
another. 3.
… a denomination is supposed to be an organized part of
the church. 4.
… a denomination is bigger than a local church, but
smaller than the universal church. C.
We can read the Bible from cover to cover. Not once will we
find a mention of any such kind of organization. Never once do we
read of congregations banding together to form some midlevel
institution for any reason. Further, we never even find any kind
of equipping for how to set up such an organization if we wanted
one. D.
The only equipping for organization that we find is on the
local congregation level. In Acts
14:23, we read of Paul appointing elders in every church.
Additionally, in I Peter 5:1-2, we see that the role of elder does not extend beyond
the flock among which they have been made overseers—the local
congregation. In scripture, not once do we see any office
established that oversees groups of churches. The closest thing we
might find to that is the office of apostles. However, the
apostles have died and left God’s word behind to govern us. The
denomination, an organized group of local churches, is
unscriptural. With no equipping to form such organizations, we
learn from II Timothy 3:16-17, that the denomination is not a good work. III.
In the Bible, we see division condemned. A.
In John 17:20-21,
Jesus prayed that everyone who believed on Him through the word of
the apostles would be one. In Ephesians
4:4, we see that Jesus established only one body and
authorized only one faith. In I
Corinthians 1:10-13, Paul declared that God wanted no
divisions within His church. But rather, He wants us all to be
one. B.
While there will be multiple local congregations, God wants
unity even between them in the sense that the same thing should be
taught in every congregation (I
Corinthians 4:17). C.
All congregations should be totally unified within and
standing for the same teaching as every other congregation in
every other place. However, having said that, God knew it would
not be that way. In I Corinthians 11:18-19, Paul wrote that he believed there were
factions in Corinth, because he knew that they must come to show
who was approved. Not everyone who entered Christ would want to do
things His way, eventually those who were not approved by God
would move out and become separate demonstrating who was approved.
For example, note I John 2:19, where John described the group we have come to know as
the Gnostics leaving the churches to which he wrote. These people
left because they were not really of God. They formed their own
fellowships because they were not really in fellowship with
Christ’s church. This same pattern has continued over 2000
years. Just as with the Gnostic teachings, new teachings have
continued to arise and new churches have continued to be
established. Despite what some say today, this division is not
healthy. It is not helpful. Jesus said in John
17:20-21 that unity is what would be the greatest testimony to
the world that Jesus came from God. Denominational division is not
simply unauthorized, it is condemned. IV.
What should we do to be what God wants? A.
If the present state of Christianity continues, there will
be numerous who face the dark words of Jesus in Matthew
7:23, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice
lawlessness.” What needs to occur to get things back to the way
God wants them? B.
We must first get rid of the creed books written by men
that divide us. Jesus proclaimed, quoting the prophet Isaiah,
“In vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments
of men” (Matthew 15:9).
In place of man written creeds, every church should simply use the
Bible to direct its affairs and govern its teaching (II Timothy 3:16-17). C.
Secondly, we must get rid of the unscriptural
organizations, offices and hierarchies. Instead of having
archbishops, cardinals, presidents, judiciary committees, councils
and conventions, we must follow the pattern of God, allowing each
congregational to be autonomously governed by its own shepherds
submitting to the Chief Shepherd (I
Peter 5:1-4) and using the Word of God as its by-laws,
constitution and creed. D.
Finally, if the religious world as a whole is unwilling to
take these steps, then at least we must be willing to do so,
banding together only as a local congregation without
organizational ties to any other congregation. We should be able
to say that we are a local congregation that is submitting to
Christ, self-governed by His organization and teaching as
delineated in His word. Neither this congregation nor we
individual Christians should have any kind of organizational
fellowship with any other congregation. The only other fellowship
we enjoy is as individual Christians in fellowship with every
other faithful Christian who walks in the light through the blood
of Jesus Christ (I John 1:7).
But notice, that is not a fellowship among churches, but among
Christians. E.
If you are our guest at the Franklin Church of Christ,
allow me to assure you that what I have just described is exactly
what we already have here. While you may have seen numerous
churches with the name “Church of Christ” on the door, we are
not denominationally affiliated with any of them. Despite how the
phone book may list us, we are non-denominational, in fact, more
than that, we are anti-denominational. We are self-governed by our
own elders in accord with God’s Word. But each of us as
individual Christians views ourselves as in fellowship with every
other Christian in the world. We invite you to be a part of this
non-denominational Christianity as God intended. Conclusion: To cap this off, notice what even Billy Graham admitted about denominationalism in his book, Facing Death and the Life After, in a section entitled “What will not be in heaven.” “In heaven there will be no sectarian worship, no denominational differences, no church creeds.” “God did not invent denominations, man did” (p. 230). According to Matthew 6:10, God’s kingdom and obedience within it are to be the same on earth as they are in heaven. Further, according to Matthew 15:8-9, when we are submitting to man made teachings, our worship is vain. While Graham makes these statements to get us to overlook denominationalism, in fact, they should cause us rebuke denominationalism. They should cause to turn away from it in all its forms and simply be what God has asked us to be—Christians, members of His universal body, joining ourselves to a local group of disciples to accomplish His work. We should be nothing more and nothing less than that. So then, our final question is what brings us into fellowship with God and all the saints through the blood of Jesus Christ? Romans 6:1-4 explains clearly. We enter the death and blood of Christ by being baptized into Christ. As Peter proclaimed in Acts 2:38 we are to repent and be baptized for the remission of our sins. That is, based on our faith and confession of that faith (Romans 10:9-10), we must determine to turn away from our sins and then be immersed in water for the remission of our sins. We are not to be sprinkled or poured. We are not to be immersed as an outward sign of inward grace. We are not to say the sinner’s prayer, pray through to salvation or simply have a moment of faith. Instead, we must be baptized into Christ and into His death. Then and only then will anyone enter into the fellowship of Christ’s church, because at that point God will add you to His church (Acts 2:47).
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
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